The stock price of Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT) has plunged by -0.81 when compared to previous closing price of 402.51, but the company has seen a -1.58% decline in its stock price over the last five trading sessions. seekingalpha.com reported 2024-12-02 that Caterpillar designs, manufactures, and sells machinery globally, with a market cap near $200B and a historical annual return of nearly 15%. The Company is a Dividend Champion and Aristocrat, having increased its dividend for 31 years, with a recent 8.5% hike and a declining payout ratio. Valuation suggests CAT is trading for an approximate 15% premium to fair value and will need to pull back some before I consider adding it to my portfolio.
Is It Worth Investing in Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT) Right Now?
The price-to-earnings ratio for Caterpillar Inc (NYSE: CAT) is above average at 18.51x, Company’s 36-month beta value is 1.10.Analysts have differing opinions on the stock, with 7 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 3 as “overweight,” 9 as “hold,” and 6 as “sell.”
3 Tiny Stocks Primed to Explode
The world's greatest investor — Warren Buffett — has a simple formula for making big money in the markets. He buys up valuable assets when they are very cheap. For stock market investors that means buying up cheap small cap stocks like these with huge upside potential.
We've set up an alert service to help smart investors take full advantage of the small cap stocks primed for big returns.
Click here for full details and to join for free
Sponsored
The public float for CAT is 481.85M, and currently, short sellers hold a 2.02% ratio of that floaft. The average trading volume of CAT on December 04, 2024 was 2.35M shares.
CAT’s Market Performance
CAT’s stock has seen a -1.58% decrease for the week, with a 5.17% rise in the past month and a 18.56% gain in the past quarter. The volatility ratio for the week is 1.89%, and the volatility levels for the past 30 days are at 2.04% for Caterpillar Inc The simple moving average for the last 20 days is 0.95% for CAT stock, with a simple moving average of 12.23% for the last 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of CAT
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for CAT stocks, with Evercore ISI repeating the rating for CAT by listing it as a “Underperform.” The predicted price for CAT in the upcoming period, according to Evercore ISI is $365 based on the research report published on November 13, 2024 of the current year 2024.
Morgan Stanley, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see CAT reach a price target of $332, previously predicting the price at $349. The rating they have provided for CAT stocks is “Underweight” according to the report published on October 14th, 2024.
CAT Trading at 1.88% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought CAT to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -4.60% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 2.04%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 1.89%, as shares surge +6.04% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading +7.57% upper at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, CAT fell by -1.58%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +24.03% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $395.52. In addition, Caterpillar Inc saw 35.04% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at CAT starting from Fassino Anthony D., who sale 6,279 shares at the price of $408.59 back on Nov 29 ’24. After this action, Fassino Anthony D. now owns 33,565 shares of Caterpillar Inc, valued at $2,565,537 using the latest closing price.
Fassino Anthony D., the Officer of Caterpillar Inc, proposed sale 6,279 shares at $408.59 during a trade that took place back on Nov 29 ’24, which means that Fassino Anthony D. is holding shares at $2,565,536 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for CAT
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.21 for the present operating margin
- 0.36 for the gross margin
The net margin for Caterpillar Inc stands at 0.16. The total capital return value is set at 0.25. Equity return is now at value 53.54, with 12.34 for asset returns.
Based on Caterpillar Inc (CAT), the company’s capital structure generated 0.66 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 0.33. The debt to equity ratio resting at 1.95. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 25.49.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 15.71 billion with net debt to EBITDA at 1.98. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 3.43. The receivables turnover for the company is 3.43for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 0.76. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 1.40.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, Caterpillar Inc (CAT) has experienced a better performance in recent times. The stock has received mixed “buy” and “hold” ratings from analysts. It is worth mentioning that the stock is currently trading in close proximity to its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
